I'm swamped this week which is why it's the first time since preseason camp began that I have not put up daily practice reports. This should be a one-week issue only.

It looks like Tyler Johnson has beaten out Keyshawn McLeod at left tackle. McLeod is healthy and has practiced this week, but Johnson is getting the reps with the first unit when I've watched.

Willie Fritz revealed the name of the player who got hurt last week and was taken to the hospital briefly--it was wide receiver Chris Johnson. I was told in confidence it was Johnson but did not get clearance to release it until today, but the good news is he is fine. He may even be cleared to play against Tulsa. Teams have to be super cautious with injuries like that these days.

Willie Fritz has been on point in practice this week. Yesterday, he got on the case of a couple of defenders who were going through the motions in a tackling drill. That's his baby and he made sure they made the full tackle with the proper technique. Everyone understands how vital the Tulsa game is even if it does not benefit them to come off as over-emphasizing it.

Here is Fritz from today:

How have practices been coming off the open date?

"They've been OK. I think we're fresher and really the big deal is mentally getting out here and getting after it. I told these guys, Tulsa's kind of had their way with Tulane over the last 15 years. We've gotta come out and play great. Just like every game's a big one for us, this one's a big one."

Offensively, you've talked about using Banks to get more big plays. Do you see them buying into that in practice?

"I don't know why anybody wouldn't. He's going to have to do a great job of running the ball. It's funny. I watch college football. and I watch (Louisville's Lamar) Jackson and (Quinton Flowers from USF), and every one of these guys darn near are all running it 10, 15 times a game. That's what we do, too, so he's going to have to do a tough job running it and he's going to have to do a great job throwing the ball. He's got to be able to do both, plain and simple."

Do you want to see better play from the receivers?

"We have to improve in that area just like every other area. In order for us to score more points, which is what we've got to do, we have to play better in every single phase offensively. We've got to play better in every single phase offensively. We've got to do a better job with the offensive line, tight ends, running backs, quarterbacks and wide receivers, so everybody's got to pick it up for us to be able to score more points."

Terren Encalade had a chance to make a leaping catch on the winning drive against Army and did not hold on to the ball. Is that a play you expect him to make?

"You betcha. We tell all of our receivers, if you touch the ball our expectations are for you to catch the ball. He'll come back. He's got good hands and is a good receiver and has made some clutch plays for us and will do it again."

How much faith do you have in the defense against Tulsa's running attack after the Army game?

"It will be the same thing. They are a great running team. They've got a back who's probably going to be the all-time leading rusher in their school's history. (D'Angelo Brewer). We have to do a super job of tackling. Their quarterback is a two-way threat. He throws the ball well and runs the ball well. We have to do a great job of defending the run, and with our eyes whether we're playing zone or man-to-man, we talk all the time about hard man focus and really locking in on your guy and not trying to look back at the quarterback with all of our defensive backs."

Their quarterback, Chad President, had two huge runs against Navy early. He's a big guy, so what is the key to containing him?

"He's fast also. We have to do a good job of playing with leverage and tackling and wrapping up and using our arms and just not letting him get into space, and if he does, we have to make it a quick one."

Is the player who got hurt last week and was taken to the hospital for observation checking out OK?

"Chris (Johnson)? He's fine. I think he'll be available (against Tulsa).}

I have been participating in this since the start of the year but have not posted it anywhere. Each beat writer does a one-paragraph blurb on the team he covers, and all of us rank the teams 1-12.

I will publish the consensus each week and then list my own rankings at the bottom.

AAC POWER POLL

1. USF (5-0, 2-0 AAC): The No. 18 Bulls amassed a season-high 390 rushing yards in a 61-31 romp of East Carolina, extending their program-best win streak to 10 games. Only Oklahoma (14 games) owns a longer current streak in the Football Bowl Subdivision (Clemson also has won 10 in a row). After a bye week, the Bulls host Cincinnati on Oct. 14. If they score at least 30 in that one, it will be their 23rd consecutive game of 30 or more points, tying an FBS record set by Oregon in 2011-12.

-- Joey Knight, Tampa Bay Times


2. UCF (3-0, 1-0 AAC): Adrian Killins’ 96-yard touchdown run set the tone for the Knights, who amassed more than 600 yards of total yards for the first time since 2013 in a decisive 40-13 win over Memphis on Saturday night at Spectrum Stadium. The defense forced four turnovers while holding the Tigers to 25 percent completions on third downs. UCF ranks fourth in the nation in opponents’ third-down conversion rate, allowing just 21 percent on the season. The Knights travel to Cincinnati this Saturday looking to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 1988.

-- Matt Murschel, Orlando Sentinel


3. Navy (4-0, 3-0 AAC): A battle between teams picked third and fourth in the West division turned into a rout as the Midshipmen overcame an early two-touchdown deficit and pulled away to beat Tulsa, 31-21. Quarterback Zach Abey continued his impressive season by rushing for 185 yards and three touchdowns as the Mids took the early lead in the West with a 3-0 conference mark. Navy looks to start a season 5-0 for the first time since 2004 when it hosts service academy rival Air Force on Saturday.

-- Bill Wagner, Baltimore Sun Media Group


4. Memphis (3-1, 0-1 AAC): In arguably the most-ballyhooed game in the conference last week, the Tigers fell flat and were routed by UCF, 40-13. They committed five turnovers, allowed the Knights to accumulate more than 600 yards of offense and were, as coach Mike Norvell put it, “dominated … in every phase.” Memphis will try to get back on track Friday night against UConn.

-- Tom Schad, The Commercial Appeal


5. Houston (3-1, 1-0 AAC): In search of a spark on offense, the Cougars made a switch at quarterback with longtime backup Kyle Postma replacing Kyle Allen. Postma threw for 226 yards and a touchdown and ran for 81 yards as the offense continued to have its ups and downs in a 20-13 win over Temple. All eyes this week will be on the status of All-America defensive tackle Ed Oliver, who is dealing with an MCL sprain and is likely to be a game-time decision Saturday against SMU.

-- Joseph Duarte, Houston Chronicle


6. SMU (4-1, 1-0 AAC): It wasn't pretty at times, what with 11 penalties and some inconsistent offense, but SMU walked away with a 49-28 win over Connecticut on Saturday. Quarterback Ben Hicks completed 73 percent of his passes for 280 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, but coach Chad Morris grew frustrated with some of Hicks' overthrows. Morris tried to light a spark for the offense by having backup DJ Gillins run the offense to start the second half. Morris ultimately decided Hicks gave the team the best chance to win at the time but this position is one to keep an eye on moving forward, beginning Saturday against Houston.

-- Adam Grosbard, Dallas Morning News


7. Tulane (2-2, 0-1 AAC): The Green Wave had an open date to gear up for a home game against Tulsa, which has beaten Tulane in 11 of the past 12 years, winning nine of them by at least three touchdowns. For the first time in that stretch, though, Tulane is favored (by three points). This is a really important game for the Green Wave, which is 4-21 in league action since joining the AAC. Win and coach Willie Fritz will have the first tangible proof he is changing the culture of the program.

-- Guerry Smith, The New Orleans Advocate


8. Cincinnati (2-3, 0-1 AAC): A terrible start doomed the Bearcats in a 38-21 home loss to Marshall. UC trailed 24-0 by halftime, and three turnovers led to 21 Marshall points. The Bearcats touchdowns were scored by redshirt freshman running back Gerrid Doaks, true freshman running back Michael Warren II and true freshman wide receiver Javan Hawes. Next: Unbeaten UCF, at Nippert Stadium on Saturday.

-- Tom Groeschen, Cincinnati Enquirer


9. Tulsa (1-4, 0-1 AAC): For the third week in a row, the Hurricane lost a winnable game, falling 31-21 at home to Navy on Saturday. Tulsa built an impressive 14-0 lead in the first quarter before surrendering 31 unanswered points. Until the fourth quarter, Chad President had thrown for only 17 yards amid continued offensive struggles. With bowl eligibility slipping out of reach, Tulsa visits Tulane on Saturday to face a third consecutive option-based offense.

-- Kelly Hines, Tulsa World


10. Temple (2-3, 0-2 AAC): The Owls showed some fight in Saturday’s 20-13 home loss to Houston. Trailing 20-0 after Houston scored on the opening second-half drive, Temple finally got its running game in gear and ran for a season-high 142 yards, including 150 in the second half after minus-eight in the first. Logan Marchi threw three interceptions for the second straight game. With little realistic chance of defending their AAC title, Temple now has to concentrate on becoming bowl-eligible. Saturday the Owls visit East Carolina, a team the Owls beat, 37-10 in last year’s regular season finale to clinch the AAC East Division title.

-- Marc Narducci, Philadelphia Inquirer

11. East Carolina (1-4, 1-1 AAC): The Pirates fell to 1-4 thanks to a defense that still cannot find a 60-minute effort or enough stops to set the stage for wins. Quarterback Thomas Sirk turned in his most complete effort with 300 yards passing and 87 more on the ground, but South Florida posted four unanswered scoring marches in the second half to put the Pirates away, 61-31. The game happened in front of the smallest announced regular-season crowd since 2006, which does not bode well for this Saturday's noon kickoff against fellow AAC East struggler Temple.

-- Nathan Summers, The Daily Reflector


12. Connecticut (1-3, 0-2 AAC): The Huskies represented themselves well in coming back to tie SMU 28-28 on the first play of the first quarter but fizzled from there, losing 49-28. The positives: Bryant Shirreffs has set a career high for passing yards in consecutive games (406 vs. ECU, 408 vs. SMU) and the UConn offense is humming. Four players have had 100-plus receiving yards in a game this season for UConn, but the defense remains in shambles. The Huskies are home Friday night against Memphis.

-- Mike Anthony, The Hartford Courant

MY RANKINGS

1) USF
2) UCF
3) Navy
4) Houston
5) Memphis
6) SMU
7) Tulane (I've had Wave 7th the last 3 weeks. This is 1st time it has been that high in the consensus)
8) Tulsa
9) Temple
10) Cincinnati
11) East Carolina
12) UConn

I will keep adding to this as I have more time to watch. Here are some thoughts:

1) The blocking on Dontrell Hilliard's 75-yard touchdown run was excellent.

--Dominique Briggs and Junior Diaz double teamed Army's nose guard and pushed him out of the way, creating a seam right up the middle. Corey Dublin pulled and took care of the left end. Keyshawn McLeod blocked just well enough to keep the right end out of the play. Charles Jones lined up as an up back and made an outstanding block on a charging linebacker. Te other linebacker did not read the play well, got caught in traffic and watched as Hilliard ran by him. John Leglue didn't have to do anything, although he engaged the wide guy who did not have a chance to make the play. The deep safety blew any chance at making a play by running to his right and getting out of his gap. Hilliard outran everyone else, creating separation as he went.

2) The blocking on Sherman Badie's 72-yard TD run was good but not as good as on HIlliard's

--Leglue did his job on the right side, sealing his guy. The cornerback read the play, but Hilliard, who lined up to the left of Banks in a two-back set, took care of him, blocking him just long enough for Badie to scoot through the gap between him and the left end. Terren Encalade engaged the other DB on that side of the field long enough for Badie to get by him, and Badie did the rest, outrunning a safety who had the angle on him, and no one else was going to catch him. Briggs did just enough, too, engaging a linebacker to keep him from making the tackle. Charles Jones was in the backfield as an up back again but did not really have an effect this time.

3) Tulane's defense was terrific on the fourth-and-short stop near the end of the first half.

Cornerback Donnie Lewis came up to prevent a pitch to the pitch man. Eldrick Washington at right tackle (I guess it's really an end in Tulane's new aligment) held his own, and Quinlan Carroll diagnosed it perfectly at rush end, stepping in between blockers to stone the running back single-handedly, with Cameron Sample there to finish him off. Army was in fourth down because of back-to-back excellent plays by Rod Teamer, who came up to stuff a dive on first down and then made an ankle tackle on a pitch play that appeared destined for a first down. Carroll is a good player.

4) The penalty on Devin Glenn for interference on the muffed punt was justified.

--He did not give the returner enough space under the college rule. It was an easy call.

I'm hearing Tulane's next commitment likely will be Northwest Rankin High (Flowood, Miss) RB Cam Carroll, who is listed at 5-11, 220.

He is in the Rivals database but does not have any stars. His other D1 offers are from Southern Miss and South Alabama. MaxPreps has him with 806 yards on 101 carries through six games.

I expect Tulane to sign a maximum of 20 guys in February, but it could get one or two higher (or one or two lower) depending on what happens with returning players. The Wave has 14 commitments at the moment.

Very encouraging to read that one of his primary motivations is job security and being at a place where they trust him. This alleviates a big fear of mine that he'd be poached as soon as we had a good season or two. After reading this I think he'll be at Tulane long enough to make a lasting impact and to change the perception of our program.

Also very interesting to know that we only had to pay $100,000 to buy him out of his contract. What a stroke of luck!

http://savannahnow.com/local-colleg...-recording-suggests-ex-georgia-southern-coach

1) South Florida at East Carolina

Not that it matters in this game, but I don't have a good read on South Florida yet. The Bulls have started slowly in almost every game before turning it on, quarterback Quinton Flowers has not played as well as he did last year and the kicking team has allowed too many blocked kicks, a concerning feature of the Charlie Strong legacy. But they also still have Flowers, the most dynamic player in the AAC, and more talent player-for-player than any team in the league. East Carolina certainly can't play with USF, but I would not count out Tulane's chances to finally beat a ranked team when the Bulls come to Yulman Stadium in October. And if UCF can stay within one game of USF, their season finale in Orlando will be for the East division championship.

South Florida 48, East Carolina 10

2) Houston at Temple

Houston, which has a terrific defense and a terrible offense, is another mystery in the AAC. Will the Cougars contend in the West or will they disappoint just like last year, when they were better overall than they are this season. But in Temple, they are facing a team with a terrible offense AND defense. The Owls should not be this bad--they were ranked second, fourth and third in the AAC Rivals.com recruiting rankings from 2014-16-- but they are.

Houston 31, Temple 10

3) Navy at Tulsa

This is an interesting game. Tulsa, my preseason West division champion (Phil Steele was high on Tulsa, too), has been horrendous defensively and has struggled in the passing game, too while putting up some amazing rushing numbers in a disappointing 1-3 start. It's hard to imagine what Navy's No. 2-ranked rushing offense will do to Tulsa's No. 128 total defense, but Tulsa had its best defensive game in a 16-13 loss on Saturday to New Mexico, which runs the triple option out of the shotgun. This is a must-win game for Tulsa if it wants to be a factor this season. Navy, meanwhile, can improve to 3-0 in the AAC. It's a rematch of a West-deciding game Navy won 42-40 last year when the teams combined for 1,077 yards and Tulsa got hosed on a call by the officials (sound familiar?) when it recovered a fumble in Navy territory late that was ruled down. Navy picked up a first down seconds later and ran out the clock instead of Tulsa likely driving for the winning score.

Navy 34, Tulsa 27

4) Connecticut at SMU

UConn is fourth from the bottom nationally in total defense but third from the bottom the AAC since Tulsa and East Carolina occupy the bottom two spots. Losing to ECU at home is as bad a loss as possible, and it could get ugly in Dallas. SMU gave TCU a better game than Oklahoma State did before wearing down.

SMU 45, Connecticut 17

5) Memphis at Central Florida

Maybe I have a blind spot about Memphis, but I'm not sure what all the fuss is about yet. The Tigers gave the AAC a huge boost by beating UCLA, but the Bruins are one of the softest teams in the country and were burned for easy touchdown on not one, but two long screen passes in that game. I was not impressed by Memphis last year and am not convinced this team is top notch this season. UCF has played only two games due to Hurricane Irma, destroying FIU (which has won two in a row since then) and Maryland (which had beaten Texas, albeit with Ty Pigrome before he suffered a season-ending injury in that game). UCF, favored by 4 points even thought almost everyone appears to be picking Memphis, is the better team on a neutral field and certainly the better team at home. I think.

UCF 41, Memphis 31

Other thoughs:

---I'm bullish on USC to beat Washington State by at least two touchdowns. People are nitpicking the Trojans too much, particularly Sam Darnold, who is one of the most clutch quarterbacks I've ever seen. Yes, he's thrown seven interceptions, but people were down on Clemson because Deshaun Watson threw too many picks last year, and look how that turned out.

---Tanner Lee needs to have a big game for Nebraska against Illinois. He was booed by Cornhuskers fans after throwing yet another pick six on Saturday--his third in two weeks and a problem that plagued him at Tulane--but he recovered to play pretty well the rest of the way in an uninspiring win against Rutgers.

---Clemson will be too tough defensively for Virginia Tech. The Hokies almost never beat highly ranked teams in the Frank Beamer era, so it will be interesting to see what Justin Fuente can do in a similar situation. His presence gives them a shot. He's a big-time coach.

---If you're looking for an upset that will help the AAC, try Northern Illinois over San Diego State. For the third straight year, experts are talking about the Aztecs going undefeated. The last two seasons they inexplicably lost to South Alabama, and Northern Illinois, which upset Nebraska, fits that profile. It is so hard to go undefeated regardless of your schedule. San Diego State, which will get the Access Bowl berth that goes to the highest-ranked Group of Five team if it wins all of it games, won't get there.

I mean I'm just asking...

With a week off between games I thought it a good time to look at recruiting. We’re less than three months away from the “early signing” date and 4 ½ months from the February date.

How many Openings? We have ten players who will complete their eligibility this year. With only 80 of the allowed 85 kids on scholarship, we should have a minimum of 15 openings for this recruiting cycle. By my count, we have 13 additional players who will have completed their undergraduate curriculum but have a year of eligibility remaining. I suspect at least three of those will forego their fourth year of eligibility. Additionally, based on recent history, I think we can expect at least three more players to depart the program due to health issues, lack of playing time, or a variety of other reasons. It’s just what happens. Therefore, I think we could have at least 21 slots to fill during one of the two signing periods now available.

Quarterback. I’m assuming that Culliette will not return for another year of “clipboard duty” and holding for kicks. And with Ledford apparently moving to wide receiver, that leaves us with only three potentially returning QB’s. We have one QB commitment, Patrick Shegogg, a smallish kid from Mississippi who is very quick and has a strong throwing arm. Shegogg did not have a very good junior year, completing only 45.6% of his passes, but, through five games this season, is completing 59% of his passes with 11 TD’s and 5 INT’s. He’s also carried the ball 69 time for 356 yards for another three TD’s. I’m not sure he’s a “game changer,” but he looks like a good prospect. That said, I would not be surprised to see us sign a second QB; we’ve got (or at least had) offers out to several good ones still uncommitted.

Running Back. Clearly the departure of Hilliard and Badie is not a good thing. But with Bradwell, Huderson, and Dauphine (assuming all are healthy), we’ve got the start of a solid backfield for next year. Strickland is the wild card. Will he be healthy? Can he contribute? We’ve got one RB commitment this year, Amare Jones, from Texas. He’s played QB almost exclusively in high school and has some impressive stats in 4 games this year (55% completions (36 for 65) for 456 yards, 7 TD’s and no INT’s. He’s also 67 for 713 rushing with 4 TD’s. He may need a redshirt year to learn the running back position, but the kid is the most elusive back I’ve seen coming to Tulane in years. Regardless, and whether Strickland is ready, I’d like to see us sign a second RB this year, probably one a little bigger and more of a power runner. We need a couple of heavy duty “inside guys” and right now I see only one—Bradwell.

Tight End. I would expect all four of our current tight ends to return next season, so it is not an area of immediate need. Nonetheless we have a commitment from 6’4,” 220# Joshua Quiett and 6’2,” 232# Tyrick James. Quiett has played a lot of wideout and James has also played linebacker in high school so I’m not sure where either will end up. Regardless, I think we’re done at this position.

Wide Receiver. We currently have eleven scholarship wide receivers including Ledford and they all are eligible to return. So, like the tight ends, we’ve certainly got the numbers. That said, we’ve apparently decided on our top four and playing time for others may be at a premium. I wouldn’t be surprised if one or two moved on. Beyond all this, our wide outs are not that impressive and we don’t have any WR commits. I’d be happy to get another bigger receiver with speed. We’re recruiting a number of them.

Offensive Line. No Tulane fan can possibly fail to recognize our long-term problems on the O-Line. Of course, we’ve got 13 scholarship linemen on the roster who are all eligible to return. That said, I think at least two will not be back next year and who knows about Knighton, who is in graduate school already. We’ve got four incoming freshmen based on their current commitments and I really like two of them, Hogan and Swann. But, truthfully, though they are under the radar, Remondet and Lewerenz also appear to be more athletic than most of our recent linemen. We still might sign another. Couldn’t hurt.

Defensive Tackles. We’re losing both starting tackles next year, Sean Wilson and Eldrick Washington and their experience will be missed. I really like our commitment from De la Salle, Jamiran James and Devon Wright from Donaldonsville also looks like a potential player. But, I’d still like to see us get one, maybe two, more.

Defensive Ends. Like the tackle position, we’re losing two starters in Aruna and Carroll, though I don’t think either reached their potential at Tulane. We have three commitments in Monjarres, Ryan, and Hatcher, and that may be enough for this year. The question in my mind revolves around Robert Kennedy, who I think may be our best defensive end. How bad are his injuries? When will he return? As a redshirt junior, will he hang it up? If so, I’d like to see us sign another defensive end.

Linebacker. We’ll be losing Luke Jackson and Rae Juan Marbley as a minimum after this season and don’t have any commitments at the position thus far. I think we need at least two, preferably at least one who can play the OLB/DE position we are using more and more.

Defensive Back. Coming off of a game in which we didn’t allow any passing yards and had two interceptions, you’d think we have no concerns back there, especially since we may return 14 of our 16 defensive backs. Of course losing Franklin and Nickerson will leave some mighty big holes in the secondary. I’d guess we’ll lose a couple more due lack of playing time and we’ve only got one commitment so far. Of course, the one, Jamal Anderson, is probably our top rated recruit and looks capable of stepping into the starting lineup very early. That said, we need at least one more.

Special Teams. At least statistically, Block is not as bad a punter as many of us think, but he will be a senior next year. Is this the year to sign a replacement? I’d say yes if we can find a good one. At place kicker, Glover, the walk-on, is only a sophomore, and Neenan, the displaced kicker, is a redshirt freshman. Neither is very impressive and I can’t believe we’re going to depend on either of them for 2-3 more years. If we can’t find a “great” kicker, we need to sign at least a “pretty good” kicker. With our long term history of excellent field goal kickers, we can’t continue to accept this level of incompetence.

So, depending on how many openings we eventually have, I’d like to see 1 QB, 1 RB, 1 WR, 1 OL, 1 DT, 1DE, 2 LB’s, 1 DB, a placekicker and a punter—11 players, 25 total. We probably won’t be able to take that many so we’ll have to wait and see

Roll Wave!!!

Tulane had a serious injury at practice this morning, prompting Willie Fritz to call it off early. I do not know who got hurt, but when I arrived at Yulman Stadium, they had medical personnel gathered around a player on the ground who was then taken away in a stretcher.

Understandably, Fritz elected not to say who was hurt because the family had not been notified, but offensive coordinator Doug Ruse said it looked like the unnamed player would be OK as he left the field. I did not see whether it was an offensive or defensive player.

"I'd rather not do anything until we find out what's going on and I have a chance to talk to his mom," Fritz said. "It was an injury, but I think he's going to be OK. Actually I'd rather not jump the gun on anything and talk to the proper people and all that stuff."

The practice, which was scheduled to go until 10:30 a.m. before the team takes four days off during its bye week, was halted a little before 10 a.m.

"We ended it a little bit early, I think 18 plays, so it's no big deal," Fritz said. "This week obviously it's not as critical."

That was it on that topic, but hopefully whoever it is will turn to be fine. When anyone gets taken off a field on a stretcher, it's always scary.

Tulane has eight takeways through four games, ranking in a tie for 25th nationally in that category. Fritz, who preaches ball security endlessly, said the high rate of forced turnovers was not by accident.

"It's something we work on a bunch," he said. "A secret to how a lot of people get a lot of takeaways is film study, video study. Every time you push the ball carrier, it's a chance to get the ball out, and there are certain techniques we use based on the location of the ball and your angle of arriving to the ball. The good coaches are able to really talk to guys watching film with me, because that's all I do, is what you need to be doing: punching the pocket, fingertips over the table, rake, high point the ball, my elbows need to be above my eyes. Just everything. You have to coach that. They don't just fall out. They do sometimes, but usually they don't just throw it to you. You've got to do a good job of taking an interception path. Where should I break on the cut where I can intercept the ball rather than being an uphill, shoulder player. It's easy to say, hard to do, but we've done a pretty good job the last 20 years."

I asked Fritz how much he'd been able to judge his defense based on the unusual opponents in the first four games--FCS Grambling, national championship contender Oklahoma and two triple option teams in Navy and Army.

"It really has been a whole lot of different stuff," he said. "I was disappointed in the Oklahoma game because we gave up some easy ones. Three deep and we aren't playing three deep, just stuff like that. It's simple. You've got to make them work at it, and we had three big busts in that game and most of the games we had zero. We played with a lot of toughness last Saturday. They are a tough team to play. You've got to be on point every single play. You've got to have physicality on every single play. For the most part, we did that."

Tulsa isn't exactly the norm in Tulane's next game, either, running the Baylor offense that spreads the field but pounds the ball up the middle without the option element of Fritz' system. But it will be a good test for the defense.

"They are really unique, too," Fritz said. "They'll go three by ones, two by twos, they'll take big, gigantic splits, and everybody thinks they are a real big passing team, but they are a great running team and Baylor was a great running team whenever that was. They are really a good team. Big splits with the offensive line, but if you honor that too much out there, they are going to run it down your throat. If you pack the box, they feel like they have good match-ups and they'll take advantage of it. You've got to be multiple against them and not line up in just one front or one coverage or you'll get killed."

Fritz is relishing the opportunity to get another crack at Tulsa after Tulane's defense cracked a year ago against the Golden Hurricane. Tulsa ran for 330 yards on 58 carries and passed for another 236 yards, finishing with 556 yards after the Wave had not allowed 400 yards in its first six games.

"We played horribly," Fritz said. "We'll need to play a lot better than what we played. Last year they found some match-ups that were good for them and took advantage of it. We had a tough time defending some of the guys."

Tulane will lift weights Thursday but won't practice again until a light workout Monday. Fritz has become more conscious of not overworking his teams as he has gotten older.

"The older I've gotten, the more I've realized that rest and recovery is a lot more important," he said. "You don't have a lot of opportunities to do it. We need to get healed up and we are fairly healthy right now. It's a good time to let the kids unwind a little bit. We've got to be mature enough to get back to work on Monday."

Tulane has scored seven touchdowns in eight red zone possessions through four games, settling for a field goal on the other one, but Fritz did not appear overly impressed by that stat. The Wave is one of 17 teams that have scored on every red zone series, and its percentage of touchdowns is higher than all but UTEP, New Mexico State and Oregon State. Those teams are a combined 3-9, so maybe Fritz has a reason not to be impressed.

"We've done a good job of play calling, but we've got to score more points," Fritz said. "We've got to take advantage of every series. The good offenses don't have dropped passes. They don't miss open targets. They finish runs. They move the chains. We've got to do a better job of that. We're playing a bunch of teams that are high powered, and obviously it behooves us to score more points. We didn't do that."

Fritz pointed out the winning drive against Army was not exactly textbook.

"A lot of it was improvisation by Banks, and he did a great job of that and we're going to need more of that, too," Fritz said. "That's called taking advantage of your athletes, but everybody's got to do their one-eleventh and everybody's got to be on the same page. If we do that, I think we can have a high-scoring offense. But it sure helps you defensively. As I mentioned before, if we could have just gotten up 21-10. It was 14-10 all that time, and I really think it might have become a runaway, but we couldn't do it, and hats off to Army."

WILLIE FRITZ

"We had a couple of big runs. Otherwise I thought our run game was kind of average. There were about five or six times where we had a chance for a big play or a conversion and we got a penalty or we just missed a block, dropped the ball and we couldn't keep the sticks moving and we had to punt and get the defense back out there again.

"It was a sensational job by Jonathan Banks on the last series. He made a lot of plays on his own with his legs and with his arm. He gives you a dynamic that when you have that at quarterback, you've got a chance. We have to do a good job this off week of figuring out exactly how to use the guy. He's a unique player, and sometimes he doesn't always draw it between the lines, but that's OK. You've got to figure out how to use the guy.

"But we're excited about the win. I think our program needed a win like this. I don't think Tulane's had a win like this in a couple of decades, for a while. It's a big one. It's a big one."

Army controlled the time of possession. How tough was that to overcome?

"Yeah, you've got to move the sticks against these guys, give our defense a chance to recover and rest on the sideline. I was just hoping we could get up 21-10. If we get up 21-10, they are totally out of their game plan and they have to start changing what they are doing. We couldn't get that. We had the pass interference on Terren Encalade, got good field position on that and then we kind of petered out on that drive."

It was fourth-and-8 deep in your own territory on the game-winning drive and you didn't hesitate to go for it.

"We had to go for it. If we don't get it, then you have to hope you hold them to a field goal and you still have to score a touchdown anyway, so we knew before the series began that we were in four-down territory."

Was there any thought of trying a game-tying field goal before the last fourth-down conversion?

"No, we had fourth-and-short. It looked like it was only about a foot or two to me and shoot, let's go for it. If we can't make a foot, we don't deserve to win. To be honest with you, I didn't feel like playing an overtime."

Last year you lost close games and this year Navy. Does that build into the decision of going for the win in that situation?

"I hope so. One of the things I talked to our guys about in the locker room just a moment ago is I felt a lot of energy on the sideline on the last drive. We got across the 50-yard line, and we need to have that all the time. That's part of changing the culture and being tough and having grit and fighting through adversity. We're learning how to do that as a staff and as a team."

Did you think Banks would be able to come back in after he took that nasty pop on the final drive?

"I wasn't sure whether he'd be able to come back in or not. He's a tough kid, so one of the reasons I took him was he was playing junior college and one time he dove on about a fourth-and-6 one time and got seven. It was really a tough-guy play, and I know he's got that in him. We just have to get him understanding touchdowns, first downs, slide. He did a good job of that a couple of times when we had to get the first, and he sprinted to a crease and got the first."

When he was out for a play, you went to Khalil McClain. Was Johnathan Brantley not healthy?

"Well, we knew we were going to do a run play (actually it looked like a pass that McClain scrambled on). We thought we'd get Khalil in and give him an opportunity."

How about the defense coming up with big stops when Army reached the red zone or close to it?

"That was a huge play by Donnie Lewis with the interception. Any time they throw the ball, you've got to take advantage of it. Now it gets them behind the sticks. By and large our defense did a pretty nice job. They had 69 rushes and 371 yards rushing, but I'm going to guess that a pretty good chunk of those were in the fourth quarter."

What were you telling Banks on the sideline when you had limited possessions?

"You've got to play the next play, you've got to play every play to the best of your ability. He understood that, but we weren't out there long enough to get a whole lot going."

When you talk about changing the culture, how big was this win against a team you were expected to beat and for your chances of getting to a bowl game?

"I think it's big. That's an eight-win team last year that won a bowl game. That's where we want to be this season. Coach Monken has done a fabulous job there. I've known Jeff a long time. He does an excellent job and I knew it was going to be a fight to the end. We're fortunate to win, but we'll take it. We've had a few that we haven't been able to get done, so we'll take this one."

Defensively, were they loading the box on you?

"Yeah, they did a good job of slanting and twists. They didn't early and we creased them the first play of the game for 75 yards on a little counter play. Then they started twisting and looping and it makes it harder to run the inside zone. You've got to be able to move the sticks. We were interjecting some pass plays and not converting on those. Now we're behind the sticks and it's third-and-9 and they know what we're going to do."

For most of the game it looked like Banks was hesitant to run.

"He's been out a couple of weeks, and he'll get better at it. He ran when we needed him to run."

Ade Aruna didn't play until the last three plays. Was he hurt?

"He sprained his ankle against Oklahoma and didn't really practice all week. We got him in there at the end because we needed an edge pass rusher in that particular situation."

Was this a game you might not have won a year ago?

"I don't know. We didn't have Banks last year. We've just had a tough time. We've been competing and been close with some good teams. We just hadn't gotten it done. Getting one, now the guys start getting confidence. Every program I've been in, we've had a couple of games like this where you kind of look back on and see it. I hope this is one of them. It definitely is pointing us in the right direction. It's a whole lot better to go into this off week at 2-2 than it is 1-3."

Guerry- any updates on recruiting? Any of our previous visitors close to committing?

The good news is that we won. Banks played an incredibly courageous game, particularly on the last drive. And Army is probably a tougher team than most people who follow college football realize. All that said, I didn’t think we looked particularly good. But, as they say, the scoreboard is the only measure of the game that counts. Big win!!!

We had 253 yards rushing on 30 carries, but 170 of those were on 3 plays. We gained 83 yards on the other 27 rushes, not much more than 3 yards per carry. Of course, all the plays count and our blocking at the point of attack on Hilliard’s and Badie’s long TD runs was excellent. But Badie, in particular, simply outran everyone who had the angle on him or it would have been a 15 yard carry at best. Far too often, we were stuffed for very little yardage.

Banks was 10 for 22 passing which sound terrible, but he had at least two clear drops, a couple passes blocked at the line of scrimmage, and had to throw away two more. He clearly is our best thrower at this point and, when he gets healthy, could be a real threat. We’ll see. I’m optimistic.

Our tight ends were invisible and our wide receivers had trouble gaining separation against Army’s secondary. I’ll say that again. They had trouble gaining separation against Army’s secondary despite the threat of our running game. That’s not good, though it appears that Mooney, Clewis, and Robertson have now joined Encalade in our top four. We’ve got a number of others resigned to watching most of the game. Better wide receivers would help.

On defense, it’s hard to find much to like from our interior line other than they competed to the end. They were shredded all game long by the fullback up the middle. Yet, I thought Sample, the freshman, outplayed our more experienced guys. He could be a very good one. Of course, Army only scored 17 points but they kept the ball for far too long. If they had any passing game, we might never have stopped them. As it was, when they inexplicable passed on that one long drive, it ended in a turnover. In my opinion, their ineptitude passing was more important to their lack of scoring than our defense.

Our linebackers made a ton of tackles, but they tended to be 5-9 yards downfield and even then we missed a number of tackles. Can’t allow that.

When you don’t allow any completions and intercept two passes, it’s hard to complain about our defensive backfield no matter the opponent. Donnie Lewis, who I frequently criticize, made a truly great play on his interception. And Nickerson made at least three highlight plays- one when he ran down the Fullback at the one yard line (though they eventually scored), his play against the “trick” kickoff return in the last minute of the game, and his interception on the game’s final play. But, everyone has to take some blame for allowing Army to run so well.

On special teams, Banks made a terrific “pooch” punt to the 3 yard line but Block, who averaged over 40 yards per punt, had only a 34.5 yards net due to a touchback and 8 return yards on four punts. Their guy had two punts averaging 51 yards with no returns, so we lost that battle. We held them to the 24 yard line on average from our kickoffs, the exact same starting position we achieved. And Glover made all three extra points without trouble but probably hasn’t gained Coach Fritz’s confidence to try anything much longer.

Like coaches say forever, it’s good to win but have some things to work on. We’ve got two weeks to prepare for our next “must win”—Tulsa.

Roll Wave!!!

Tulane conducted its first of two bye-week practices on Tuesday morning at Yulman Stadium, doing the usual Willie Fritz stuff like a long tackling drill for the defense that had coaches rolling a donut and the guys having to bring them down with proper tecnique as Fritz offered commentary. There was no 11-on-11 work when I was there, with a seven-on-seven drill finishing the workout.

Terren Encalade turned in the play of the day, leaping in the back for a touchdown that drew cheers and high fives from his offensive mates. Jonathan Banks threw a nice fade to Jacob Robertson for a score near the goal line but missed tight end Charles Jones on a designed roll-out pass one play later. Parry Nickerson came up with an interception of Khalil McClain at the goal line. Jonathan Brantley, who was left on the sideline in favor of McClain for one play on the final drive when Banks got hurt, threw a ball to the corner of the end zone that traveled about 30 yards, so his shoulder appears better even though there has been no official confirmation he had a problem there. Jaetavian Toles dropped a pass, another indication the freshman receivers are not ready to contribute.

Larry Bryant and Eric Lewis dressed but did not participate in the tackling drill, and neither did Rod Teamer, who practiced in every other situation.

The Wave will be back to practice tomorrow morning before taking a long weekend off, getting needed rest in anticipation of an important conference game with Tulsa on Oct. 7.

We talked to three players and Fritz. Here's what they said:

TERREN ENCALADE

How much fun was that raucous locker room scene with players passing coach Fritz over their heads and he surfed the room after the Army win?

"Oh man, it's amazing. He's a real passionate guy. You can tell he loved football when he was playing and he still loves it as a coach, so for him to be excited just makes us even more excited."

When you have a coach that does that, can you relate to him?

"Oh yeah, we relate to him a lot. There's a lot of enthusiasm that goes on with football and he's a very enthusiastic coach."

Is that the first time it's happened here?

"No, we always have at little after-game (win) celebration. That's just something we like to do."

Can you talk about building on that last drive with Jonathan Banks?

"We preach about finishing in the fourth quarter, and the O-line did a great job, Banks came in and made unbelievable plays, unbelievable throws and everybody just played their part and we came out with the win."

What does he bring to the passing game?

"He can scramble. He has that ability to make somebody miss or make two people miss. He's real smart and he stays in the film room and he just wants everybody to be on the same page. It works out well."

You've been 2-2 before, but is this a more confident 2-2 the way it happened?

"It's a different 2-2. Last year we were 3-2 and went into the bye week, but this year it feels a whole lot different. We're on the right track. We've been ready for some big things."

Why is it different?

"It's a different culture. It's a different vibe that everybody's giving off. It's more positive things. Nobody has his head down. Nobody's pouting. It's just guys trying to be leaders. Guys are trying to make plays, guys want to make plays and it just works out at the end."


ROD TEAMER

You guys have been 2-2 quite a bit since you've been here, but does this feel like a different 2-2?

"Honestly, yes we do feel like we're ready for some big things, but we try not to dwell on the past too much. Everybody within our program knows how the past couple seasons have turned out below expectations for us, for our fans and everybody involved with Tulane. We try not to look at that, but it is exciting, the direction we feel like we're going."

The drive the offense had to win the Army game, how much does that help with confidence for the whole team?

"It's amazing for us. Around our program everybody always talks about defense and stuff like that and the years that we've had defensively, but it's exciting for the offense to score. That makes me more excited than us getting a stop. Jonathan coming over here has been huge for us, his leadership and he displayed all of that on that drive and did what he needed to do and those guys rallied around him and they made it happen."

Like you said, the offense has not had many big moments since you've been here. How much does that help unify the whole team to know the offense is capable of handling its end of the load?

"It helps a lot. That was part of the reason we had division in our team in the past even prior to coach Fritz being here. For them to be doing well, the defense loves that because the best defenses are the ones that get to sit on the side and watch. If you're not out there, you can't get scored on. We push those guys and they push us and we want them to be successful."

Is Coach Fritz always that excited in the locker room after a win?

"Absolutely. After every victory he's excited. Every win is important to him. There's always the next game. No win's bigger than another."

It's hard to get a gauge on the defense after two games against triple-option teams, Oklahoma and Grambling. Where do you feel like you guys are?

"I feel like we are getting better defensively. Our communication has to improve. Missed tackles, we have to get that down. We try to have zero missed tackles in a game but we'll accept single digits. We just try to focus on the little things--tackling, communication and our cover skills."

Army gashed the defense pretty good Saturday, but you got some key stops. How important was that and can you take positives out of that?

"It is very important. Army did a great job running the ball and they really did what they wanted to do against us, but luckily our offense hung in there and did what they had to do. We hung in there and we battled the whole game and a couple of things went our way. We got some stops. Donnie (Lewis) had the big turnover down here in the red zone, so would you call it luck, I don't know, but whatever it is, I hope we keep it."

The good news is Tulane covered, giving all 19 of us two points. The bad news is I didn't get any other game right, coming very close to the dreaded zero.

Most of the rest of you weren't that hot, either, with winwave and mono41 the notable exceptions.

WEEK 4 RESULTS

7

winwave

6

mono41

5

St Amant Wave
DrBox
bbos1025
MNAlum
buck2481

4

Wavetime
p8kpev
Charlamange8
LSU Law Greenie
Golfer81
GretnaGreen

3

diverdo
paliii
Kettrade1
highwave
WaveON

2

Guerry Smith

OVERALL STANDINGS

23

St Amant Wave
winwave

22

bbos1025

21

mono41
Guerry Smith
p8kpev

20

DrBox
Charlamange8

19

Kettrade1
paliii
buck2481
MNAlum
GretnaGreen
WaveON
Wavetime

18

LSU Law Greenie

17

diverdo
Golfer81

16

highwave

11

Harahan Wave (missed 1 week)

WEEK 4 GAME BY GAME

Tulane 19 out of 19
Georgia 5
TCU 7
Texas Tech 2
Kentucky 5
UCF 4
Notre Dame 10
Texas A&M 8

Here's the list, which predictably is not as large as for the night game against Grambling.

UNCOMMITTED

1) Sorrell Brown, WR, 6-3, 190, Arlington (TX) Martin, 3 stars

Comment: Has offers from Air Force, Purdue, UTEP and Tulane. Purdue is interesting because coach Jeff Brohm loves to throw the ball. Brown fits the size profile of the receivers Fritz wants. Martin High is 3-0, scored 50 or more points in its first two games and is rated the 21st best team in Texas by Maxpreps in any classification.

2) Tylan Driver, DT, 6-2, 300, Lakeshore High, 2 stars

Comment: Driver, who is not in the 247Sports database, has a sole offer from Arkansas State according to Rivals. Lakeshore is 3-0 and has held its first three opponents to a combined 40 points.

https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2018/tylan-driver-204968

Here is an article on Driver by David Folse of The Advocate, who this summer listed South Alabama as a second offer.

http://www.theadvocate.com/new_orleans/article_943d4c08-4cb3-11e7-a1da-57ba26843812.html

3) Jared Miles, WR, 6-1, 185, McDonogh 35, 3 stars, No. 52 prospect in Louisiana

Comment: Reportedly has offers from TCU, West Virginia, Virginia and Houston among meany others. Pelican Preps rated him the 11th best WR/TE prospect in the state. Scroll down at the link below to see what they said about him. In March, he listed UTSA, Oregon State, UAB, Houston and TCU as the leaders in no particular order.

https://pelicanpreps.rivals.com/news/2018-louisiana-s-top-20-wr-te-20-11-

https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2018/jared-miles-14406

4) Scooter Adams, ATH, 5-9. 185, Hallettsville, TX, no stars

Comment: His only offers are from FCS programs. Hallettsville is a tiny town of less than 3,000 in the middle of nowhere about two hours away from Houston, San Antonio and Austin. Hallettsville is a 3A Independent schools district and has scored 49 points in each of its first two games.

https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2018/scooter-adams-171513

5) Jeff Marks, DE, Davidson High in Mobile, Alabama, no stars

Comment: He is not in the Rivals, Scout or 247Sports databases, but he has a Hudl video. Davidson High is 3-2 but has held its first five opponents to a total of 25 points.

https://www.hudl.com/profile/5335666/jeff-marks

6) Camerun Peoples, RB, 6-1, 193, Central of Clay County High in Lineville, Ala, no stars

Comment: Peoples is in the Rivals and 247Sports databases but with no rating. 247Sports says he has received interest from Illinois, Georgia State, Massachusetts and Troy. Lineville is a tiny town in Eastern Alabama about an hour-and-a-half from Birmingham. There's no info on him from Rivals other than his name, but here's his Hudl video.

http://www.hudl.com/profile/4285983/camerun-peoples

7) Adrian Bowie, LB, 6-2, 220, East Ascension High, no stars

Comment: Not in the Rivals or 247Sports databases. Has a Hudl video. East Ascension is 2-2 and has held three of its opponents to 13 or fewer points.

http://www.hudl.com/profile/8547449/adrian-bowie

COMMITTED ELSEWHERE FOR THE MOMENT

1) Josh Smith, DE, 6-4, 247, Landry-Walker, 3 stars, 17th best LA prospect, 29th best Strongside DE nationally.

Comment: committed to Kansas in June. Has offers from Houston, Missouri, Iowan State and Oregon State among others. Explained why he chose Kansas here. His Rivals rating of 5.7 is higher than anyone on the Tulane roster, for what that's worth.

https://kansas.rivals.com/news/josh-smith-talks-about-tony-hull-and-why-he-chose-kansas

2) Kyree Currington, DB, 5-11, 170, Holy Cross, 2 stars

Comment: Committed to Idaho in August. Plays safety at Holy Cross, which gave up a total of six points in its first two games before losing 23-21 to Chalmette last week. Reportedly has offer from SMU.

https://n.rivals.com/content/prospects/2018/kyree-currington-24605

2019 PROSPECT

Christian Harris, ATH, 6-1, 225, University High in Baton Rouge, no stars yet

Comment: Apparently has offer from Ole Miss and ULL.

ALREADY COMMITTED TO TULANE

1) Jamiran James
2) Juan Monjarres
3) Michael Remondet

---James and Monjarres also came for the Grambling game.

As always, the Tulane game counts double, home teams are listed first, neutral-site game are designated as such and the point spreads come from VegasInsider.com consensus. With only one sports book having a Tulane line up due to the uncertainty at QB, I chose my own spread.

Tulane (-2.5) Army
Georgia (-5) Mississippi State
Oklahoma State (-11) TCU
Houston (-6) Texas Tech
Kentucky (+3) Florida
Maryland (-3.5) Central Florida
Michigan State (+4) Notre Dame
Texas A&M (-2.5) Arkansas (neutral site: Arlington, TX)

Just noticed you picked seven games and forgot to pick the Houston-UCF game in pick 'em.

It looks like Jonathan Banks might start for Tulane on Saturday against Army, but don't take that to the bank because coach Willie Fritz understandably has been non-committal on the topic this week. The fact of the matter is there's no way to know for sure whether Banks can take hits since quarterbacks are off limits to contact in all practices, but Fritz said they would rely on what the team's medical staff said and make a decision on game day.

If Banks doesn't start, Johnathan Brantley will get the nod. He has recovered from the hits he took against Oklahoma and split the reps with Banks today, with freshman Khalil McClain seeing his reps taper off. My guess is they go with Banks, find out if he can handle the contact and have Brantley ready in case Banks can't hack it.

"He (Banks) is looking better," Fritz said. "There are a couple of things we have to check and see after practice today on him. It's difficult (to know whether he can take hits). We'll get with the doctors who handle those sort of things."

Banks, the better passer, and Brantley, who was terrific on the option early against Oklahoma, have different skill sets and will have different game plans ready for them. Fritz confirmed as much after practice today. It will be a tough decision because ideally, it would be good for Banks to get this week and the bye week off before returning against Tulsa on Oct. 7, but Tulane has to win Saturday. It will depend on how close to 100 percent he is and who the coaches think gives them the best chance to beat Army. Brantley has improved as a passer, but Banks beat him out because he is better in that department and they feel like he gives them the run-pass balance they want for the offense in their second year.

Banks definitely is not 100 percent. Offensive coordinator Doug Ruse said he would have gotten 70 to 80 percent of the reps in a normal week rather than less than 50 percent for this week in a three-way rotation.

"He's done good, but he's been limited," Ruse said. "But unlike last week, he's been able to get in and get some reps, and we've still got 48 hours before we play, so hopefully he'll get to feeling a lot better in the next day or so. He'll be a game-time decision, but it has been nice to get him out there and let him get some reps. I know he was very anxious."

Ruse praised Brantley's performance against Oklahoma. He and the offense were terrific for three series until his bad pick-six that turned the game. He took some hard hits the rest of the way, but Ruse said he was fine.

"He did take some hits, but he's got a feel for, particularly in the run game, to get low and finish runs the right way," Ruse said. "He's good to go. That touchdown run, We've talked to all the skill position players, this is what you've got to do in the open field. He played a good game and that was an excellent run on his part."

McClain was not nearly as successful in his five series at the end of the game, but Ruse said it was an important learning experience. The fact that he got plenty of reps this week means something--the coaches aren't in the habit of wasting practice time.

"We were able to get him his first action (at Oklahoma) and he made some mistakes," Ruse said. "Whether that was at Oklahoma or here against Grambling or whoever, that was a first-game for you. I told him on Monday morning, all right, you're no longer a true freshman. You play like a veteran from here on out. He was nervous, but that's out of his system now. He's a heck of an athlete and we've got to use him in some capacity every week. He's doing a nice job progressing real well."

Kendall Ardoin practiced today, and I may have missed him out there yesterday. I don't know how because I was watching for him closely, but he has been cleared to play and will give Tulane a second tight end against Army. He blocked well in the first two games before leaving in the second half against Navy with an illness.

Look for John Leglue to stay at right tackle for the rest of the year. The coaches moved him back to the position he started a year ago last week, and the offensive line performed better with him there and Keyshawn McLeod at left tackle.

"He's played there more, so that's the reason we moved him over there," Fritz said of Leglue. "We tried him at left and the other guys were a little bit more used to left than right, so we went ahead and shifted that and it went better for all the guys."

Taris Shenall has not practiced this week after being the victim of the hit by Oklahoma receiver CeeDee Lamb that resulted in Lamb being ejected Saturday. Fritz said Shenall had not been ruled out yet, but Shenall did not play much in the game at Navy anyway because other players are more suited to defend the option.

Tulane will have some defensive tweaks against Army because it always does, but defensive coordinator Jack Curtis said yesterday the basic plan would be the same because it worked very well against Navy. That means Jarrod Franklin and Rod Teamer at safety, Donnie Lewis and Parry Nickerson at cornerback, Zach Harris and Rae Juan Marbley at linebacker, Luke Jackson and Quinlan Carroll at the hybrid end-linebacker spots, Eldrick Washington and either Ade Aruna or Patrick Johnson at DE/DT and Sean Wilson at nose guard. Aruna's strength is not against option teams, so it will be interesting to see how much he plays Saturday.

The second-team defense is P.J. Hall and Chase Kuerschen at safety, Tre Jackson and Thakarius Keyes at cornerback, Lawrence Graham and Marvin Moody at linebacker, Michael Scott and Peter Woullard at the hybrid end-linebacker spot, De'Andre Williams and Cameron Sample at DE/DT and Braynon Edwards at nose guard.

K.J. Vault is not practicing due to injury.

D.J. Owens turned in the play of the day, making a leaping catch along the sideline, grabbing the ball with one hand before bringing it in to the second one. I can't swear he landed inbounds because it was on the far side of the field, but it was a heck of an effort regardless. On the very next snap, Andrew Hicks dropped an easy pass over the middle. That's been the story for Tulane's secondary receivers. Other than Terren Encalade, Darnell Mooney and, to a lesser extent, tight end Charles Jones, no one has been productive.

"It's not bad that we've got guys competing and a lot of guys at that position," Ruse said. "I agree Darnell and Terren have been as steady as you can be with their play and their preparation. They love football, but we have two or three other guys who deserve time and have been rolling in equally."

Ruse was happy to see the offensive line play like it did early against Oklahoma. As Fritz said earlier in the week, the entire offense is based first on being successful with the inside zone plays, and Tulane was much better against Oklahoma in that department than Navy.

"We were on the same page, where we weren't the game before," Ruse said. "In the first half that's the way we played, but we couldn't get going in the second half and get that spark to get us going. We were awfully close on that first drive in the third quarter (the one where Mooney had a long pass go off his fingertips). Had we made a couple of those plays, who knows? But that's what we've talked about. We have to play four quarters like we played the first two."

How did you feel about practice today?

"I thought it was a little more crisp. On Mondays you get out and you squat heavy and then you try to get out on Tuesday and practice and sometimes it's pulling teeth. We had a good workout. It was better today and it will be even better tomorrow. There were new things we put in for the offense, defense and kicking game and we got a little better grasp of it the second day than the first."

Can you go over the Jack Curtis story one more time? It's so unusual for a new coach to retain a defensive coordinator he inherits, particularly when he's never been on the same staff before.

"Doug Ruse and Jack had coached together for years and years and years and Kevin Peoples had coached for me for a long time. When they knew I was getting the Georgia Southern job, they recommended Jack. Coach Monken was moving in a different direction going to Army. I watched tape, visited with Jack, liked what I heard and saw and retained him. Plus, he had come in the year after I left Central Missouri (for a one-year stint as defensive coordinator). I was there 13 years and I know almost everybody in the town. I had good recommendations on him, retained him and he's done a great job for us."

What do you like about him as a defensive coordinator?

"He's good to the kids. I like that. He's multiple but not too multiple. He's open to new ideas. We really got involved in the tackling and the leverage component, and that's probably where I've had any type of influence on what he was doing. And then I just let him roll with it. He and his staff, he's got a great working relationship with Peoples and Mike Mutz and he knew Hampton well. They all work really well together."

You seemed to have a pretty good option plan for Navy, and your personnel seems well suited to stop the option. How will that help against Army?

"Jack went against this particular option for three years, and he knows some things that are good and bad. There are some things we really liked that we did at Navy and there are some things that maybe weren't quite what we wanted, but every week is different."

How did Chase Kuerschen grade out in his first start?

"Not bad. For a true freshman, he's got a lot of poise. He plays hard, and that was a game that the safeties got exposed. They (Oklahoma) got up to the second and third level a lot more than other games. Sometimes if you're just assignment sound and you're playing safety you can have a good game because there's not a whole lot of action back there. There was a lot of action in this game. He missed a few but he also made quite a few. For going against a top-notch team, it was a great learning experience and he did a good job."

Has Corey Dublin been your most consistent lineman?

"Right up there. I would say Junior Diaz and John Leglue played well, too. Corey's definitely doing an excellent job for a true freshman."

Cameron Sample just turned 18 today. What do you like about him?

"He's a stud. He's a good player. He's a highly intelligent kid. He's assignment sound and he is easy to coach and he's competitive. He just kind of gets better every day. He's going to be a big-time player for us."

You have a couple other freshmen contributing on defense in Patrick Johnson and Tirise Barge, Stephon Huderson playing at running back and Khalil McClain getting some series at quarterback against Oklahoma. Are you impressed overall with the freshmen?

"Yeah, we signed a really good freshman class. These guys were all going to have a chance to play for us. Some of them are starting or are going to be starting this year, some of them for sure next year and the year after. It's really helped with our depth having quality players."

I expect Jonathan Banks to start against Army Saturday, but that's not coming from coach Willie Fritz, who remained mum on the subject after Wednesday's practice. I certainly don't have any proof because the quarterbacks weren't throwing downfield much in the portion of practice I watched and of course they weren't taking hits. Banks, Johnathan Brantley and Khalil McClain all got reps again.

"Yeah, it is," was Fritz' three-word response when asked if the quarterback situation was still wait and see.

I also expect Rod Teamer to play despite his own hesitation when asked about his status yesterday. He practiced with the first team today ahead of Chase Kuerschen.

If I'm right, and I'm not guaranteeing anything, the only significant player who will be unavailable is tight end Kendall Ardoin. He has not been at practice this week and did not travel to Oklahoma because he was sick. The last time I saw him, he was walking with a trainer to the locker room in the second half of the Navy game. Without Ardoin, Tulane has used only one tight end--starter Charles Jones. Freshman Will Wallace has dressed for all three games but has yet to play, and the Wave opened without a tight end against Oklahoma, replacing Jones with a second running back.

Fritz said he liked Wednesday's practice and thought it was better than Tuesday's. I definitely like the defense's plan for Army, which won't vary much from the plan against Navy. Defensive coordinator Jack Curtis said he was very pleased with how Tulane played Navy's option with the exception of three or four plays, including the missed tackle by cornerback Donnie Lewis that turned a routine gain into a 79-yard touchdown pass. That mistake had nothing to do with the scheme.

This report is brief, but I will have a lot of Q&A material up either later today or tomorrow. Fritz is very high on his freshman class, which was not rated high by any of the recruiting sites.

Today is Cameron Sample's 18th birthday. I'm telling you, he did not look like a 17-year old in his performance in the first three games. Fritz loves his attitude and potential. Sample is playing that hybrid end-tackle position that three-man fronts use and has made six tackles in the first three games, providing valuable downs for the defense.

I talked to Sample, Jack Curtis, Chase Kuerschen and Corey Dublin today as well as Fritz. Everything they said will be posted here by tomorrow.

All but eight of Tulane's freshmen have played this year.

Chase Kuerschen and Corey Dublin are starting.

Cameron Sample, Patrick Johnson, Tirise Barge and Stephon Huderson (to a lesser degree so far) are contributing.

Dane Ledford, Marvin Moody, Khalil McClain, KJ Vault, Jaylon Monroe, Jaetavian Toles. Michael Scott and Kevin LeDee have played, with Moody and Vault doing most of their work on special teams. Scott and LeDee got in for the first time against Oklahoma. I did not notice LeDee and will confirm his status, but he has been very good on the scout-team offense, giving the defense a challenging player to cover.

Nick Kubiet, Quentin Brown, Torri Singletary, Willie Langham, Will Wallace, Cameron Jackel, Travis Tucker and Joey Claybrook have not played.

It's not clear what will happen for Tulane at quarterback this Saturday, and that's the way coach Willie Fritz wants it to be in anticipation of a huge game against Army. Jonathan Banks, Johnathan Brantley and Khalil McClain all took snaps against the scout-team defense in the last 30 minutes of practice. Publicly at least, Fritz was not brimming with confidence about Banks' availability even though he already has done more this week than he ever did last week.

"It's probably going to be a game-time deal," Fritz said. "We're going to see how he progresses. We've just got to see if he's able to go. You certainly want to make sure that a guy is able to go out there. Nobody is full speed right now. The first day of practice in preseason camp is the last time anyone's full speed. We just want to make sure where he's at."

I've had sources tell me different things, but it's possible that Banks has two cracked ribs. He was in a ton of pain watching the second half of the Navy game, and that injury would explain why Fritz is not sure he can risk playing him this Saturday. They are not worried about Banks' toughness, by the way. It may be that he just can't go, but Fritz sees no reason to A) make a decision yet and B) announce that decision when he does not have to.

Brantley's health status is not certain, either, although Fritz said he could have gone back in in the fourth quarter against Oklahoma after cramping up earlier. I saw no signs of a shoulder injury today, but I didn't see enough to know for sure. Wednesday's workout, when all the TV crews will be gone, should be more telling. The staff was clearly protective of information today, questioning the validity of everyone who came in with a camera.

Fritz had this to say about McClain, who struggled against Oklahoma after entering his first college game in the third quarter. Tulane picked up four first downs in his five series, and he did complete a pass until the final 11 seconds, hooking up with Dane Ledford on an out route for 11 yards. His first throw looked like some of the ones I saw in practice last week, a bouncer to Darnell Mooney near the sideline.

"I told him today I know I threw you out there in a pretty tough spot, "Fritz said. "It's a little different than opening your season up with somebody else, the No. 2 team in the nation on the road. It was tough, but I thought for the most part he handled himself well."

Roderic Teamer practiced today, but he, too, said he was not certain he would play Saturday after missing the Oklahoma game with a foot injury.

"I'm not sure yet," he said. I'm working with the training staff trying to get ready."

I believe Tulane's ideal lineup against Army would be Teamer, Jarrod Franklin, Chase Kuerschen, Rae Juan Marbley, Zach Harris and Luke Jackson starting in some capacity with Parry Nickerson and Donnie Lewis at cornerback and Sean Wilson in the interior of the defensive line. Those guys combined for 56 tackles against Navy. Ade Aruna, who had zero tackles at Navy, and Eldrick Washington (one tackle) also would likely start but with a regular rotation up front including Braynon Edwards, Quinlan Carroll, Peter Woullard and Cameron Sample along with a little bit of Patrick Johnson and De'Andre Williams. Fritz pointed out after the Oklahoma game that Tulane had plenty of bodies along the line, and they will need to keep those guys fresh against Army.

Fritz treats every game the same because that's what good coaches do as they try to build a winning culture, but everyone understands the importance of beating Army. It will be awfully difficult for Tulane to become bowl eligible or even compete in the American Athletic Conference if it can't win at home against a solid but not spectactuar non-conference opponent.

The situation at quarterback makes the prospects more dicey. Tulane, which opened as a 4-point favorite, is down to 1 1/2 on one of the few sportsbooks (Westgate Super Book) that is offering a line on the game without knowing which QB will start.

"Our margin for error is pretty slim," Fritz said. "We're getting better, but we've had some breaks early in the season, particularly with the quarterback, and we've got to fight through that."

Army is a respectable opponent. The Black Knights beat Wake Forest, AAC champion Temple and Navy on their way to a bowl game last year, while Tulane lost to all three teams. Army also got blown out by Notre Dame, Air Force and North Texas in the regular season before beating the Mean Green in OT in a bowl game rematch no one wanted to see.

One of the biggest difference between Army and Navy normally is ball security, but Army has only two turnovers through three games this year. Tulane capitalized on a series of fumbles to beat Army two years ago, and Army turned it over a whopping seven times in its loss to North Texas a year ago.

Army QB Ahmad Bradshaw is a dreadful 4 of 17 passing this year, but look for the Black Knights to take a few more shots against Tulane after watching the Navy tape when there were some open receivers as the Wave loaded up to stop the ground game

Army played Ohio State pretty well on Saturday, losing 38-7 but having a 99-yard touchdown drive in the middle of it and rushing for 259 yards on 58 attempts. That's good when you're outmanned like the Black Knights were. Tulane will need to be as disciplined against the run as it was against Navy.

Army relies almost exclusively on QB keepers and fullback runs. Bradshaw has 53 carries. Fullbacks Darnell Woolfolk, Andy Davidson and Calen Holt have combined for 68 carries. The only running back with more than three carries is Kell Walker with 13. Tulane will need a healthy Sean Wilson for this one because that's where Army attacks. You can count on the linebackers and safeties and corners defending the option well, but the Wave needs to be solid up front, too.

Defensively, Army should not be as good as last year, when it had standout linebackers Jeremy Timpf and Andrew King in the middle of a 3-4 defense and held Temple to 13 points, Wake Forest to 13 points and Navy to 17 points. This year, the defense held up well against Fordham and Buffalo and not so well against Ohio State, so it is hard to judge it yet.

Army had to convert a fourth-and-goal at the 1 in the fourth quarter to beat Buffalo, which actually upset the Black Knights last year. One thing is certain: Army is nowhere near as consistent as Navy, with its performances all over the board last season despite winning eight games for the first time in forever, posting their second winning record since 1996.

This is a veteran team with most of its starters back on both sides of the ball minus the two key linebackers. Tulane will have to play well to win unless the Black Knights commit a bunch of turnovers.

This is a revenge game for Tulane defensive coordinator Jack Curtis. When Army coach Todd Monken got the job, he was the coach at Georgia Southern and Curtis was his DC. Monken told Curtis if he came with him to Army he would just be a position coach. Then Georgia Southern hired Willie Fritz and Fritz decided to retain him as DC there despite never having coached with him before.

Having neither attended nor seen the Oklahoma game on TV, it’s hard to make any credible judgements about our performance. Of course, getting beat 56-14 doesn’t sound very good. However, listening on the radio, we apparently played Oklahoma even for the first ten minutes or so and were competitive for the first 20 minutes. We were truly outmanned, however. Oklahoma’s 2nd and 3rd string players are probably bigger, stronger, and faster than many of our starters. Of course that doesn’t always determine who wins, but as Damon Runyon wrote many years ago, “that’s the way to bet.” Our chances were “slim and none.”

According to Graf on the radio, our line pushed theirs around for most of the first half. Hilliard, Badie, and Bradwell all had success and apparently ran hard. Brantley also had success running and pitching, at least for a while. The “pick six” obviously turned the game around but we didn’t quit, at least not initially, if ever. Even after the interception, we drove the ball deep into Oklahoma territory before a sack and “pooch kick.” From then on, we couldn’t move the ball. In the next ten possessions, we only earned five first downs.

Defense was a different story. After recovering a fumble on the Okie’s first series, our defense was shredded for the remainder of the game. We did recover two fumbles and forced two punts, but allowed over 10 yards per play for the entire game. We had 74 offensive plays to their 62, so I can’t blame our failures on our defense being tired. Our defensive backfield, self-proclaimed as the best in the conference, if not the country, allowed five passing TD’s and over 400 yards through the air to the likely Heisman Trophy winner. Graf commented several times that Nickerson was having a great game, so the problems must have been elsewhere. We had one sack but it didn’t sound like we pressured Mayfield much at all. Most of his incompletions were what Graf described as “going for it all.” To throw the ball 65 yards in the air requires time and space to step up. Mayfield apparently had that all night. Without seeing the game or tape, I have no idea how well we covered, though Graf, again, called many receivers “wide open.” The 82 yard TD in the first quarter was evidently 30 yards in the clear. How did this happen? Was it miscommunications, poor reads, or just getting beat? Graf made a lot of Teamer’s absence and I don’t discount the loss of his experience. On the other hand, Teamer’s strength is closer to the line of scrimmage and against the run. Over the past two years, his cover skills have not been a positive.

On special teams, we didn’t have much chance to return punts or kicks and our own punting and kicking was fine. Block was credited with a 44.8 yard average and his one 22 yard punt was credited to “team.” Was it partially blocked? Graf didn’t mention that. And, sad that it is, we finally had someone kick extra points—two in fact.

I was a little surprised to hear Ledford come in at wide receiver; I thought he’d probably redshirt. I was less surprised at McLain playing. As much as I’d like to redshirt him, with Banks a question mark for the next couple of weeks, getting him some playing time before facing Army could be important. I was also surprised when looking at the “participation stats” that Robert Kennedy apparently saw action, Graf didn’t mention it to my knowledge but I take his presence (if true) as a positive.

Anyway, I’d be interested in hearing the views of someone who actually attended the game. Mine are more guesses and suppositions based on listening to the game and reviewing game states.

On to Army.

Roll Wave!!!

TCU covered by a half-point after struggling early against SMU, although the Horned Frogs torched the Mustangs' defense.

Florida covered the 5-point spread on a miracle TD pass at the gun against Tennessee

The margins are thin in this pool, but bbos1205 got both of those right on his way to a solo win for week 3. Our scores were generally lower because Tulane failed to cover for the first time.

7

bbos1025

6

St Amant Wave

5

Guerry Smith
winwave
highwave
MNAlum
GretnaGreen

4

charlamange8
mono41
diverdo
paliii
Wavetime
Golfer81

3

p8kpev
LSU Law Greenie
Kettrade1
DrBox
WaveON
Harahan Wave

1

buck2481

Week 3 Game by game results

Oklahoma 6 out of 20
Memphis 2
Clemson 15
Florida 9
Texas 6
Miss St. 8
TCU 12
Tulsa 17

OVERALL STANDINGS

19

Guerry Smith

18

St Amant Wave

17

bbos1025
p8kpev

16

Kettrade1
WaveON
charlamange8
diverdo
winwave

15

DrBox
paliii
GretnaGreen
Wavetime
mono41

14

buck2481
LSU Law Greenie

13

Golfer81
MNAlum
highwave

11

Harahan Wave